A ‘NodeB’ may be understood as a base station designed for Universal Mobile Telecommunication System (UMTS) that is controlled by a Radio Network Controller (RNC). A NodeB is usually capable of taking care of up to six UMTS radio cells. All NodeBs and all RNCs together usually form the so-called UMTS Terrestrial Radio Access Network (UTRAN) of a Mobile Network Operator (MNO).
In 3GPP (3rd Generation Partnership Project), concepts are developed for supporting the deployment of so-called ‘Home NodeBs’ or ‘Home eNodeBs’ for the following Radio Access Technologies, for example:                3G UMTS (UMTS based on Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA), also referred to as ‘UTRA’ in 3GPP terminology);        
and its successor technology                3.9G LTE (Long Term Evolution, also referred to as ‘E-UTRA’ in 3GPP terminology).        
A ‘Home NodeB’ (HNB) or ‘Home eNodeB’ (HeNB) may be understood in accordance with 3GPP as a trimmed-down version of a base station optimized for use in residential or corporate environments (e.g., private homes, public restaurants or small office areas).
So-called ‘Home Base Stations’ or ‘Femto-Cells’ are designed to be installed by the customer himself within his premises e.g., in a ‘plug-and-play’ manner. As the ‘Femto Cell’ box may be physically solely under the control of the customer, it can be moved around and even carried to locations different from the customer's house.
For the Mobile Network Operator (MNO) this nomadic use case can be of certain disadvantages, because some kind of reliable ‘proof of location’ may be desired in some countries. If this cannot be guaranteed, regulatory requirements may not be met (due to H(e)NBs causing heavy interferences), or emergency calls may not be traced back to where they were initiated.